Congress Made a Mistake in Not Approving New Aid to Ukraine This Year
Congressional division and inaction undermine American national security interests well beyond Ukraine
I am deeply disappointed by the U.S. senators’ decision to delay voting on new aid for Ukraine until after the holidays. It was three months ago when President Biden asked Congress for a supplemental $60 billion package for Ukraine as part of a $105 ask that included new support for Israel, Taiwan, and border security. But the Senate has still not reached an agreement on this request due to amendments on immigration reform proposed by the Republican Party to this bill. Republican senators are holding Ukraine aid hostage to try to legislate radical changes in our immigration procedures into law that would otherwise never pass if proposed as a standalone bill.
I am not an expert on immigration or border security, but I enthusiastically support a robust, serious debate on ways to improve both. The status quo is not acceptable. At the same time, I find it disturbing that Republican lawmakers are using aid to Ukraine as a means to change our immigration law, and do so without a serious and robust debate. This tactic is producing bad outcomes for Ukraine and the United States.
By delaying aid, Congress is endangering Ukrainian lives. Ukrainian soldiers are already rationing ammunition, and the Ukrainian government’s worries about running out of air defense missiles, needed to protect civilians, continue to grow. Putting Ukrainian lives at risk as leverage for passing immigration reform is immoral.
In Moscow, Putin’s propagandists are celebrating these delays. They are praising Republicans on Kremlin-controlled television channels and predicting that the U.S. will eventually abandon Ukraine. If your adversaries are celebrating your actions, maybe it’s time to rethink your actions.
Congressional division and inaction undermine American national security interests well beyond Ukraine. Our inability to get things done sends a signal of dysfunction to our friends and foes alike, suggesting that the United States is no longer a reliable partner. Our enemies love it. Our allies and partners are frightened by it.
Think about the signal that delayed Ukraine aid sends to the leaders and people of Taiwan. If, God forbid, they are faced with the decision of whether to fight or capitulate to the People’s Republic of China, they will need to soberly assess the credibility of America’s commitment to helping them defend their island. Right now, we are sending a terrible message. We appear to be unreliable partners, who might change course should the war drag on too long and dismiss Taiwan as “not our problem.” If leaders in Taiwan begin to develop that assessment of our unreliability, they might choose strategies of appeasement instead. (That’s exactly what happened in the 1930s in Europe. For the details, read Robert Kagan’s excellent The Ghost at the Feast: America and the Collapse of World Order 1900-1941.)
I remain confident that the majority of U.S. Senators and members of the House of Representatives still understand how further aid to Ukraine serves American national interests. Last month, I spelled out all these reasons in Foreign Policy. The last time the House voted on continuing aid to Ukraine, 300 voted in support and only 100 voted against. Most reporting similarly suggests that a solid majority of Senators continue to support new aid. I am hopeful that they will get this done in January.
This tragic delay, however, has already done damage to our reputation around the world, including most immediately in Ukraine. I just spoke to colleagues in Ukraine today. On the eve of Christmas and the New Year, their mood is somber. They will keep fighting without or without us, but they also understand that their ability to fight, even over the next several weeks, is severely constrained by our inaction.
The U.S. Congress could have sent a much-needed message of hope to our partners in Ukraine by passing this legislation before Christmas and New Year’s. Instead, they delivered a Christmas gift to Putin.
Let’s hope they correct this mistake as soon as possible in 2024. Better later than never.
Michael, I share your sadness on lack of funding for Ukraine, but I think withholding funds is the new new form of governance in this narrow margin of governance in the 21st century. It is a form of hostage taking to bring the other side to the table, let's see how it works for our global friends. I really doubt if another Pearl Harbor or 9-11 event occurred tomorrow that the Congress could come together and fund a plan to fight a war. I go to a really unique coffee shop in East Plano, Texas named Fourteen Eighteen it is on 1418 on Avenue K, Texas and a young female one of the shift baristas is from a small town near Kyiv in Ukraine. She is struggling with her emotions daily about her family back home. Her friends and fellow workers and the folks in Plano love her dearly and are very protective of her. The other night 1418 had their Christmas Party for their employees, she got up and sang karaoke that night, and a smile was beaming from her face, it was a rock Ukrainian folk song, not a dry eye in the crowd of coffee drinkers. She is the future of her country that is looking very dark now
Michael, I listened in on your Zoom call on Ukraine. Was an excellent informative call and several of the suggestions sound like actionable items on chip sanctions and monetizing the confiscated Russian Assets? It does appear that the Blues and the Reds are lining up behind the countries that they want to support. Bipartisan for Israel, but mostly just the Dems on Ukraine. On support for Ukraine in January who is going to blink first with such a narrow majority in the House. Probably an imponderable question, but can the US continue funding that war Longterm without being talked into committing ground troops, is there a line once crossed that US troops will join the fray?